Marine governor.



G. F. BEAGROFT & J. LAWSON.

MARINE GOVERNOR.

APPLICATION FILED MAY a, 1913.

Patented J an. 6, 1914.

COLUMBIA PLANOGRAPH c0., WASHINGTON, D. c.

GEORGE FREDERiCK BEACROFT AND JOHN LAwsoN, or LIVERPOOL, ENGLAND.

ivrAniNn GovnRN'on.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Jan. 6,1914.

Application filed May 5, 1913. Serial No. 765,641.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that we, GEORGE FREDERICK BnAoRoFr and JOHN LAwsoN, sub ects or the King of Great B'ritaln, residing at LIVE! pool, in the county of Lancaster, in the Kingdom of England, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Marine Goven nors, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to marine governors of the type in which the controlling force is the pressure due to the depth of water in which the propeller is submerged, this pressure acting upon a piston and being balanced to the required extent by a spring or equivalent means. The object of the invention is to provide an improved governor of this type with a View to obtaining increased sensitiveness and certainty of action.

Governors of the type above indicated have been proposed in which the transmission, from the piston subjected tothe hydrostatic pressure tov the valve controlling the cylinder by which the throttle is actuated, is electrical, the piston being adapted to actuate a switch which closes a circuit, which, through the intermediary of a relay or otherwise, energizes an electro-magnet which acts upon the valve of the throttle-actuating cylinder. It has also been proposed, in connection with marine governors of other types, to transmit movement, from the memher on which the initial controlling force acts to the member Which controls the throttle, by means of a pneumatic system utilizing a supply of air under pressure which may be admitted to a relay cylinder and, through the intermediary of this relay, to the throttle actuating cylinder, piston valves being used to control the system. It has also been proposed in connection with a governor of another type to utilize atmospheric pressure in. conjunction with a vacuum for the purpose of moving the throttle actuating piston, the system in this case comprising a single piston valve adapted to put the two ends of the cylinder into communication with the atmosphere and the vacuunnthis piston valve being moved directly by the member subjected to the initial controlling force.

In accordance with the present invention we combine a member actuated by the hydro static head due to the depth of submersion of the propeller with a pneumatic system of transmission to the throttle actuating cylinvthe throttle controlling cylinder.

der, this system comprising a relay cylinder and a valve actuated thereby and being in connection with a condenser or other vacuum chamber, so that atmospheric pressure may be utilized for actuating both the relay and By this means we obtain a governor installation which does not require any auxiliary source of power, such as electricity or compressed air,- but depends simply upon the existence of a vacuum chamber which is an essential part of the regular equipment of a steamship, At the same time, in view of the use of a relay and simple slide valves the force required to be exerted by the initial controlling member is extremely small, so that the action may be very sensitive. This permits the use of a comparatively light spring to act on the piston so that the movement of this piston with variation of the pressure head may be of considerable extent, resulting in the avoidance of the maintenance of extremely delicate adjustment, which'is difficult to obtain in the conditions under which these parts of the governor have to work.

The features above indicated and other features of the invention will be further described with the aid of the accompanying drawings, in which Figure 1 shows somewhat diagram-matically a complete governing arrangement, and Fig. 2 shows the form of one of the valves, this figure being a section on the line 2--2 of Fig. 1.

The cylinder 1 in the arrangement illus trated is located below the water line preferably on a level with the propellers or slightly below that level, and preferably as near as possible to the stern of the ship. This cylinder is connected by means of a branch pipe with an aperture in the side of the ship so that water is admitted to the cylinder and the pressure due to the depth of submersion acts upon the piston 3 in the cylinder. 4 indicates the spindle of a cock by means of wflfiich the inlet to the cylinder 1 may be out o To the cylinder 1 is attached a vertical bracket 5 which carries at its upper end a guide for the spindle 6 attached to the piston 3. This spindle is acted upon by a compression spring 7 which can be regulated by a nut 8 screwing on the said spindle- It will be seen that the spring 7 acts against the water pressure on the piston so that as this pressure decreases when the stern of the crum at 12 and has a pin and slot connec-- tion with the upper end of the spindle 6. This valve is similar to that illustrated in detail in Fig. 2 which will be subsequently described. 7

There are three pipes connected with the stationary part 9 01 the valve. Two of these pipes 13 and 14 connect with the two ends of the relay cylinder 15, while a third pipe 16 is connected with the pipe 17 which is in communication with the condenser so that there is a vacuum within the pipe 16. Nhen the movable member 10 of the valve travels downward it puts the pipe 14 in communication with the pipe 16 and opens the pipe 13 to the atmosphere, so that atmospheric pressure is admitted to the left hand end of the relay cylinder 15, while the other end of this cylinder is put in communication with the condenser. It is well to point out at the present stage that the positions of the parts shown in the drawings are not those in which the parts would normally remain. It will be seen that the moving parts are shown in their mid positions, Whereas in operation they would normally take up one of their end positions, one position corresponding to the open position of the throttle valve, and the other to the closed posit-ion. When the stern of the ship rises beyond the limiting position determined by the adjustment of the spring 7 the spindle 6 is moved downward to its full extent and the piston 18in the relay cylinder 15 is moved to the right hand end of that cylinder as previously described. When the stern of the ship sinks again the piston 3 is pressed upward and the movable part 10 of the controlling valve is moved to the upper end of its travel, causing the piston 18 to be moved to the left hand end of its cylinder.

The piston 18 is connected with the movable member 19 of the control valve of the throttle-actuating cylinder 20. To the stationary part 21 of this valve are connected three pipes. Two of these pipes 22 and 23 are connected with opposite ends of the cylinder 20, while the third pipe 17 is, as previously mentioned, in communication with the condenser.

It will be seen that when the piston 18 is moved to the left the slide valve 19 puts the pipe 22 in communication with the pipe 17 through their ports in the fixed portion 21 of the valve. At the same time the port connected with the pipe 23 is uncovered so -will be opened tot-he atmosphere.

In the arrangement illustratedthe cylinder 20 is assumed to be carried by trunnions.

so as to oscillate as it 'actuates the throttle valve by means of a crank 24 connected with p the piston rod 25. Accordingly the pipes 22 and 23 are carried through the trunnions to communicate with passages 26 and 27 in the cylinder wall. means of which these passages are in connection with the interior-of the cylinder 20 are located a short distance from the end of the cylinder so as to be closed by the piston asit is approaching the end of its movement. Such an arrangement is of course well known for the purpose of preventing the piston from striking the ends of the cylinder. In order to start the piston from either of its end positions when the Valve 19 is moved, additional ports 30 and 31 are provided at each end of the cylinder 20. These ports in each case communicate with a chamber 32 in which works a piston 33 which in one position, namely, that illustrated in the drawing, closes the ports. Each of the chambers 32 is connected, at the end opposite that in which the ports 30 and 31 are located,

The ports 28' and 29 by.

with a pipe 34 or 35 which communicates is connected through the pipe 35 with the passage 27 through which the lower end of the cylinder is fed.

If the piston in the cylinder 20 were the upper end of its stroke and it were de-.

sired to cause it to travel to the lower end of the cylinder, the passage 27 would be put in communication with the condenser vacuum and the passage 26 would be put in communication with the atmosphere, but since the port 28 would be covered by the piston it would be impossible for air to flow into the upper end of the cylinder through that port, but the atmospheric pressure would have access by way of the port 30 to the under side of the piston 33 in the chamber 32 at the upper end of the cylinder 20 and at the same time the upper part of this chamber 32 would be in communication with the passage 27, so that the pressure.

above the piston 33 would be lowered- 'Accordingly this piston would lift and would permit communication to "be established be tween the ports 30 and 31 through which air 7 under atmospheric pressure could then pass to act upon the upper end of the piston and cause it to commence its downward movement,

It will be seen from the preceding description that the position of the piston at the upper end of the cylinder 20 corresponds to an open throttle and an uninterrupted steam supply to the engine, while when the governor comes into operation to prevent racing the slide valve 10 travels to its lower position causing the piston 18 to move to the right hand of the relay cylinder 15, which causes the pipe 23 and passage 27 to be put in communication with the vacuum pipe 17 while the pipe 22 is open to the atmosphere so that the piston is then moved to the lower end of the cylinder 20 and the throttle is closed.

A cover 36 is preferably provided on the upper end of the cylinder 1, this cover having lateral ports. It is found in practice that water will leak through to the upper side of the piston 3 and the provision of the cover 36 is therefore desirable to prevent the water from being thrown directly upward on to the operating gear by the upward movement of the piston 3. The pipe 16 is preferably provided witha three-way cock as indicated at 37 so that it can when desired be put in communication with the atmosphere for the purpose of throwing the controlling valves 9 and 10 out of action and equalizing the pressure on the two sides of the piston 18, so that the valve 19 may be moved by hand and may be rendered independent of the action of the governor when desired.

It will be seen that the only moving part which has to be actuated by the governor piston 3 is the moving portion 10 of the slide valve and the connections between the piston and the valve. It will be understood that the resistance to the movement of this valve will be comparatively small, and since the travel of the valve is short while the movement of the spindle 6 may be considerable, it is possible to arrange the spindle so as to act with considerable leverage so that the actual resistance to the movement of the spindle will be very slight permitting the governor to be Very sensitive in action, and since the parts to be moved by it can be made very light the movement can be made rapidly and communicated rapidly to the relay cylinder so that the governor can be adjusted to come into action very rapidly and at such a point as to prevent racing.

it will be understood that the only part of the mechanism which need be placed away from the engine room is the cylinder 1 and the valve actuated from the governor piston with the parts directly associated therewith.

lhe relay cylinder can be located in any convenient position in the engine room so as to be under observation and to be easily accessible.

If the cylinder 1 were arranged in such a position on the ship that it was normally above the water line, the spring 7 would require to be arranged so as to work in tension so as to balance the difference between atmospheric pressure and the pressure at the upper end of the column of water extending from the waterline to the piston 3. Both this arrangement and the arrangement previously described have been previously proposed and tried in connection with marine governors of the type in question, and it is believed that the arrangement in which the cylinder is below the water line is the more satisfactory.

We declare that what we claim is:

1. A marine governor comprising in combination a primary actuating member controlled in position by the pressure due to the depth of submersion, a pneumatic relay, a connecting member adapted to be put in communication with a vacuum chamber, means actuated by said primary member for controlling communication between the relay and the atmosphere and the vacuum connection, throttle actuating means, pneumatic operating means connected with said throttle actuating means, and means governed by the pneumatic relay for controlling the communication between the pneu matic operating means and the atmosphere and the vacuum connection.

2. A marine governor comprising in combination a primary actuating member controlled in position by the pressure due to the depth of submersion, a pneumatic relay, a connecting member adapted to be put in communication with a vacuum, a valve controlling communication between the relay and the atmosphere and the vacuum connection, a pivotal lever operatively connected with said valve at a point near its pivot and connected with the primary actuating memher at a point remote from the pivot, throttlc actuating means, pneumatic ope-rating means connected with said throttle actuating means, and means governed by the pneumatic relay for controlling the communica ion between the pneumatic operating means and the atmosphere and the vacuum connection.

A marine governor comprising in combination a primary actuating member controlled in position by the pressure due to the depth of submersion, a pneumatic relay, a connecting member adapted. to be put in conmiunication with a vacuum, a valve controlling eommunication between the relay and the atmosphere and the vacuum connection, movement transmitting means conne'ctedwith the said valve and the said primary actuating member imparting a relatively small movement to said valve for a &

large movement of the actuating member, throttle actuating means, pneumatic operating means connected with said throttle actuating means, and means governed by the pneumatic relay for controlling the commu nication between the pneumatic operating means and the atmosphere and the vacuum .flat slide valve open to the atmosphere on its rear face and controlling communication between the relay and the atmosphere and the vacuum connection, means for actuating said valve from said primary member, throttle actuating means, pneumatic operating means connected with said throttle actuating means, and means governed by the pneumatic relay for controlling the communication between the pneumatic operating means and the atmosphere and the vacuum connection.

5. A marine governor comprising in combination a primary actuating member controlled in position by the pressure due to the depth of submersion, a pneumatic relay, a connecting member adapted to be put in communication with a vacuum chamber, a fiat slide valve open to the atmosphere on its rear face and controlling communication between the relay and the atmosphere and the vacuum connection, movement transmitting means connected with the said valve and the said primary actuating member imparting a relatively small movement to said valve for a large movement of the actuating member, throttle actuating means, pneumatic operating means connected with said throttle actuating means, and means governed by the pneumatic relay for controlling the communication between the pneumatic operating means and the atmosphere and the vacuum connection.

6. A marine governor comprising in combination a primary actuating member controlled in position by the pressure due to the depth of submersion, a pneumatic relay, a connecting member adapted to be put in communication with a vacuum chamber, a flat slide valve open to the atmosphere on its rear face and controlling communication between the relay and the atmosphere and the'vacuum connection, means for actuating said valve from said primary member, throttle actuating means, pneumatic operating means connected with said throttle actuating means, a flat slide valve open to the atmosphere on its rear face and controlling the communication between the pneumatic operating means and the atmosphere and the vacuum connection, said valve being moved bysaid relay.

'7. A marine governor comprising in combination a primary actuating member controlled in position by the pressure due to the depth of submersion, a pneumatic relay, a connecting member adapted to be put in communication with a vacuum chamber, means actuated by said primary member for controlling communication between the relay and the atmosphere and the vacuum connection, throttle actuating means, pneumatic operating means connected with said throttle actuating means, means governed by the pneumatic relay for controlling the communication between the pneumatic operating means and the atmosphere and the vacuum connection, and means for cutting off part of the said connecting member from the vacuum chamber and putting it into communication with the atmosphere, thereby relieving the pneumatic relay of pressure so as to permit the free operation by hand of the means governed by the said relay when required.

8. A marine governor comprising in combination a primary actuating member controlled in position by the pressure due to thedepth of submersion, a connecting mem-- ber adapted to be put in communication with a vacuum chamber, a cylinder, a pisten working in said cylinder, throttle actuating means controlled by the movement of said piston, means actuated by the said primary member for controlling communication between the said cylinder and the atmosphere and thevacuum connection, and means for cutting ofi the vacuum connection andsubstituting a connection to the atmosphere therefor, whereby the movement of the said piston in its cylinder is rendered independent of the primary actuating member and is adapted to be freely brought about by hand, when required.

9. A marine governor comprising in conbination a primary actuating member, a pneumatic relay, a valve actuated by said primary member, a second valve actuated by said relay, a pipe connected with said second valve and adapted to be put in communication with a vacuum chamber, a branch pipe connected wit-h said pipe and with said first valve, connecting members between said first valve'and said relay, whereby said relay may be put in connection with a source of pressure and a vacuum throttle actuating means governed by said second valve, and, means for cutting 061' said branch pipe from controlled in position by the pressure due to. the depth of submersion, a pneumatic re lay, a connecting member adapted to be put in communication with a vacuum chamber, means actuated by said primary member for controlling communication.between the relay and the atmosphere and the vacuum connection, throttle actuating means, a cylinder, a piston located in said cylinder and connected with said throttle actuating means, ports located a short distance from each end of said cylinder, passages connected with said ports, means governed by the pneumatic relay for controlling the communication between the said passages and the atmosphere and the vacuum connection, supplementary ports establishing connec tion between the said passages and the ends of the cylinder, and means for opening each supplementary port when air is to be admitted to the corresponding end of the cylinder.

11. A marine governor comprising a primary actuating member, throttle actuating means, a cylinder, a piston in said cylinder connected with said throttle actuating means, ports located in said cylinder a short distance from each end thereof, passages communicating with said ports, means controlled by said primary actuating memher for admitting fluid under pressure to said passages and exhausting it therefrom, supplementary ports adapted to establish communication between said passages and the ends of the cylinder, a valve controlling the supplementary ports for each end of the cylinder and means for producing a pressure difference at each of said valves, said means coming into operation when fluid under pressure is admitted to the cone sponding passage.

12. A marine governorcomprising a pri- 4o mary actuating member, throttle actuating means, a cylinder, a piston in said cylinder connected with said throttle actuating means, ports located in said cylinder a short distance from each end. the "eof, passages communicating with said ports, means controlled by said primary actuating member for admitting fluid under pressure to said passages and exhausting it therefrom, supplementary ports adapted to establish com munication between said passages and the ends of the cylinder, a valve controlling the supplementary ports for each end of the cylinder, connecting means between the rear face of said valve and the passage at the other end of the cylinder so that each valve is subjected to the pressure difference eX- isting between the two passages and is actuated thereby.

In witness whereof, we have hereunto signed our names this 26 day of April 1913, in the presence of two subscribing witnesses.

GEORGE FREDERICK BEACROFT. JOHN LAWSON.

Witnesses:

HAROLD EDWIN PoTTs, RICHARD LOVELL CLEAVER.

Copies of this patent may be obtained for five cents each, by addressing the Commissioner of Patents. Washington, D. G. 

